Create Your Success - June 2020

Everything I’ve learned over the years has come through my own personal failures. I’m a big believer in falling down 7 times, but getting up 8… I try to relay the importance of being resilient and having the will to win when I’m dealing with my Shark Tank companies, talking to entrepreneurs, or interacting with my team at Herjavec Group.  

Now, I want to share my advice and tools for success with all of you. Here is my monthly roundup of advice and resources for those who strive to create their own success.

What you do with this information is entirely up to you, but remember – the only thing the world owes you is an opportunity. 

The #SmallBizCorner

If you know anything about me, you know I'm absolutely crazy about entrepreneurship! I respect the hustle, the pain and the passion entrepreneurs have for their business. It's not always easy - in fact it's never easy - but starting and running your own business can be the most rewarding life experience. In this section, I'd like to share some of my advice for the entrepreneurs out there...

Every entrepreneur I know is going through a rough time thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic. Nobody was truly prepared for an event like this. But you know what 11 seasons of Shark Tank has taught me? As humans, we are full of hope and optimism. Nobody wakes up and thinks, "I want my life to suck!". This is a challenging time but always remember - there is a light at the end of the tunnel. You just have to get through the tunnel!

What lessons have you learned about your business and your teams during this time? What processes didn't exist before that do now? What areas of your business were costly or bloated? Take these lessons learned and use them to propel your business forward in a post COVID world. Share your ideas with me in the comment section and stay optimistic!

LinkedIn Live with Matt Higgins

Even though every business is suffering, it's really the small businesses that are struggling the most. Whether you have had to close operations, change your business model, or go through an extremely quick digital transformation - no business has been left untouched. In my LinkedIn live stream with Matt Higgins, we talked at length about how businesses, especially small businesses, can survive and thrive amidst COVID-19. Watch the full stream below.

Lessons for Leaders

For a business leader, one thing never goes away - learning. No matter how big or small your business is, you can never stop learning. Here's my big takeaway for leaders this month.

How Great Leaders Inspire Action | Simon Sinek

This TED talk is over 10 years old but the advice you will hear in this video is timeless. Ask yourself - why do you do what you do? What is driving your organization? Inspiring leaders know their answer to the "Why" question. Like Sinek says, "People don't buy what you do. People buy why you do it."

Step Into the Tank

After years of being on Shark Tank, I’ve seen many different types of people come through those doors. As a Shark, we’re not just investing in the business – we’re investing in the entrepreneur. We look for their passion, knowledge, preparation, and charisma. In this section I want to highlight the entrepreneurs and businesses that have impressed me in the Tank and I ask them for the top three lessons they learned from their Shark Tank experience.

Goverre

Goverre is a portable wine glass tumbler with silicone sleeve and a drink-through lid. Bring your favorite glass of wine with you. No spills. Just wine!

Business Owners: Regan Kelaher and Shannon Zappala

1. If it was easy, everyone would do it. There isn’t a secret technique to get incredible sales/success other than grinding and selling every day. We love this quote: “Work like there is someone working 24 hours a day to take it away from you.”
2. You have to learn how to turn the negative “what ifs” into positive “what ifs”. When we did Shark Tank, we had a dozen what ifs and they were all negative. What if the Sharks don’t like our product? What if we aren’t good enough? We challenged ourselves to replace all of those negative what ifs with positive ones. What if the Sharks really like our product? What if we are good enough? We still do this today because a positive mindset goes a long way.
3. Listening and responding to the customer always comes first. No matter how many orders you have to ship or how short-staffed you are, you have to respond in a timely way to each and every customer inquiry.

What I'm Reading

I strongly believe that leaders are readers. I'm always reading one or two books at any given time, and over time I've read some truly fantastic books that have helped me gain perspective or improve myself and my business. Here's my recommendation for the next book to put on your reading list.

The Ride of a Lifetime by Bob Iger

Bob Iger - if you don't know - is the CEO of the Walt Disney Company. He became the CEO in the early 2000s when Disney was going through a difficult time and managed to turn the entire company around. How did he achieve that? It came down to three things:

1. Create the highest quality content.
2. Embrace and adopt technology instead of fighting it.
3. Think big - think global - and turn Disney into a stronger brand in international markets.

I truly admire Bob Iger and if you haven't read this book yet I suggest you pick up a copy today!

A Cybersecurity Minute

You might know me as a Shark on Shark Tank, but first and foremost I am the CEO & Founder of Herjavec Group, a global cybersecurity firm that protects enterprise-level businesses from cyber threats and attacks. It wouldn't be my newsletter if I didn't share my take on what I'm seeing in the cyber industry right now !

Cyber CEO: Identity Management is Here to Stay

Not long ago if you had asked any security pro about how they protect their perimeter, they would have said - firewalls. In fact, when I started Herjavec Group over 15 years ago, we were the first firewall reseller in Canada!  

Today, the security landscape looks a lot different – especially with entire workforces forced to work remotely due to COVID-19. When my team was prepping for Herjavec Group’s 2020 Cybersecurity Conversations report, I asked them a simple question: “What is the foundation of security?” 

The answer from our internal thought leaders was almost unanimous – Identity.  

As the perimeter disappears and organizations are experiencing (voluntarily or not) digital transformation, it’s clear that Identity is the answer to many of your security challenges.  

Read my recommendations for identity management in 2020 in my full Cyber CEO blog here.

Want to get the latest cyber thought leadership from the HG team? Check out our exclusive BrightTALK channel for recent webinar content. We just hosted a great webinar on Zero Trust in light of remote work - don't miss it!

Thank you for following me on LinkedIn and subscribing. Stay tuned for more monthly newsletters. It's a privilege to join you on this journey as you Create Your Own Success.

To Your Success,